1840.] Journal of a trip through Kunawur, fyc. 561 



When the Rajah of Ludak was lately expelled by the troops of 

 Runjeet Singh, and forced to seek shelter in Spiti, the Tartars as- 

 sembled to the number of 400 men, and posted themselves at a 

 gorge, in order to check the advance of the Seiks, who were reported 

 to have entered the district. The position they had chosen was one 

 where a handful of resolute men might have held an army at bay, 

 and they valiantly looked forward to the defeat of their enemies. 



When the foremost of the Seiks appeared, a single matchlock was 

 discharged, doubtless with the intent to strike a panic into the ad- 

 vancing foe, but it had unfortunately quite a contrary and unforeseen 

 effect, for no sooner was the report heard, than, without stopping 

 to witness the result of the shot, off scampered the Tartars, as hard 

 as they could scramble over the hills, and the enemy, who amount- 

 ed after all to no more than six men, inarched through the district 

 and compelled the Rajah, (who fled on hearing of the result of 

 the battle,) to seek protection in Bussaher. 



When I asked the Tartars how they could be such cowards as 

 to run from six men, they replied that they did not know at the 

 time that their enemies were so few in number, or they would have 

 fought them ! ! 



Throughout the districts of Hungrung and Spiti, as also in the 

 upper parts of Kunawur, where the Bhuddist religion prevails, 

 oblong piles of stones are constantly met with by the road side, and 

 the custom is always to pass, so as to leave them on the right hand ; 

 in the observance of this the Tartars are very scrupulous. On these 

 piles are numerous slabs of various sizes, with inscriptions engraven in 

 the characters of Thibet by the Lamas, who appear to be the only 

 people who can read them. These inscriptions "hieroglyphics," as 

 Dr. Gerard has termed them, are usually the sentence " Oom manee 

 paimee hoong" repeated two or three times on the same slab ; others 

 bear longer sentences from their sacred books, and all are analogous 

 to the tombstones of our own country. When a person dies the body 

 is burned to ashes, and intimation being given to the Lamas or priests, 

 a stone is prepared and engraven with some sacred sentence, and 

 when ready to be deposited on the pile of stones, or " manee" as it 

 is termed, the friends and relations of the deceased person assemble, 

 and repairing to the spot, walk several times round the manee, 



